Archive for the ‘2015 Archives’ Category

Brandon Vanderhegghen scored his 1,000th point during Grace’s 82-69 win at Menlo on Thursday.

The senior, who joined Logan Irwin as 1,000-point scorers this winter, reached the milestone at the free throw line late in the game and ended the contest with 17 points.

The Lancers (10-3), enjoying the warmer weather in California, made over half of their shots in a sizzling performance.

Grace started the game sharply, scoring seven of the first nine points in the contest. The Oaks (7-7) countered, pulling ahead 12-11 after six minutes of action.

But Grace exploded with a game-changing run. The Lancers used a 22-4 run to charge out to a 33-16 advantage. Grace’s offense hit two-thirds of its field goals over the opening 10 minutes, easing out to an 11-point lead at halftime.

Bench play proved key for Grace in the opening half. Grace’s subs accounted for 15 first-half points, led by six from Josh Ruggles and five from Eric Miller. Grace also dominated in the post, outscoring Menlo 22-6 in the paint.

The Lancers did their best to pull away, starting the second half with a 50-31 lead, but Menlo battled back. The Oaks scored on five straight possessions—including a trio of 3-pointers—to whittle Grace’s lead down to eight with less than six minutes to play.

Ruggles answered for Grace with a pair of 3’s of his own, and Erik Bowen converted an old-fashioned 3-point play followed by a trey from the top of the key to help end Menlo’s threat.

Ruggles tied Vanderhegghen for scoring honors on the evening with 17 points. The freshman hit seven of his first eight shots.

Caleb Roth, a 2010 graduate of Grace College, is making news across the country for his creation of eFlip, a bookselling web application. Warsaw marketing agency 212 Media Studios has been selected by Roth’s company, The Book Flipper, to develop and market eFlip. The following story is from KPLC TV in Los Angeles, Calif.

Warsaw, Indiana (PRWEB) December 15, 2015

212 Media Studios was selected by The Book Flipper, a leading Amazon FBA bookselling business based in Aurora, Colo., to develop and market its latest web application, eFlip.

“We are excited to partner with The Book Flipper in the development of eFlip. This web application streamlines the processes of many in the online bookselling community. Developing and marketing web applications like eFlip is a perfect blend of our internal development capabilities and our marketing and demand generation expertise,” says CMO of 212 Media Studios David Phelps.

212 handled the complete design, development, and roll out of this industry-leading web portal. The final product is a completely interactive and secure web application that allows clients to quickly query the eFlip database of more than three million new and used books for the purpose of buying or selling. eFlip is also equipped with a secure and fully PCI-compliant payment processing portal for buying and selling books.

Founder of The Book Flipper and eFlip Caleb Roth is excited to work with an organization in a familiar community. Roth is an alumnus of Grace College and a former Depuy Synthes employee. “It’s been great to maintain ties with the community of Warsaw. I couldn’t be happier with the strategic partnership with 212 and the work they’ve done to program and market this new software. I’m excited to have launched eFlip and to provide value to the online bookselling community by allowing people to earn an income while working from home,” says Roth.

A book by Grace Theological Seminary faculty member, Matthew Harmon, has been named among The Gospel Coalition’s Top Books of 2015. Harmon’s commentary on Philippians cited as being “evangelical scholarship” at its best. Read the complete list and reviews by clicking here. A portion of the article appears below.

Graphic courtesy of The Gospel Coalition.

Bible and Theology

Earlier this year I was preparing to teach through Philippians, so I picked up several commentaries. I had never heard of Matthew Harmon. Within the first few weeks of teaching, though, his became the first resource consulted. By the end, it was sometimes the only one. Academically informed, clearly written, and pastorally insightful, this is evangelical scholarship at its best. The volume is filled with helpful outlines, charts, and suggestions for gospel-driven application.

Grace’s shooting issues proved fatal again on Saturday in a 56-42 defeat to Cumberland in the Union Tournament.

The Lady Lancers scored eight points in both the first and fourth quarters to waste a strong defensive performance. Grace was held to 32 percent shooting for the game, including 2-of-14 (14 percent) from the 3-point line.

Grace’s aim was off from the get-go. The Lady Lancers (5-8) missed 13 of their first 16 field goals to fall into an early hole. The Bulldogs (10-3) capitalized, going on top 21-8 at the end of the first quarter.

Cumberland continued to stifle Grace’s offense and led 29-8 three minutes into the second quarter. A basket from Haley Richardson snapped the Lady Lancers’ drought, and Grace made a furious close to the half.

Grace closed the first half on a 14-4 charge, but Cumberland still led 33-22 at the midway break.

Unlike Friday – when Grace’s offense kicked into gear in the second half against Union – the Lady Lancers’ production decreased after halftime on Saturday. Grace struggled to shoot just 27 percent from the floor in the second half, missing all six 3-pointers as well.

Haley Richardson started the third quarter on a tear, ripping off eight points over the first six minutes. Grace nearly erased Cumberland’s cushion and trailed 37-34. Unfortunately, Grace went scoreless for the final 4:00 of the quarter, and the Bulldogs built up a double-digit lead that they never surrendered.

Richardson led Grace in scoring with 14 points after making 5-of-10 field goals. Kelsie Peterson was the other Lady Lancer in double figures, scoring 10 points to go along with two assists and two steals. Gabby Miller tallied eight points and two assists, but no other player for Grace scored more than four.

The Lady Lancers take two weeks off before traveling to Chicago on Dec. 28-29. Grace will play No. 1 St. Xavier and Robert Morris to wrap up the nonleague portion of the schedule.

Grace’s women’s basketball team snapped a four-game losing streak in overtime on Friday.

The Lady Lancers (5-7) took down Union 71-70 on the road against a Bulldog team that was ranked No. 19 in the NAIA Preseason Poll.

Grace overcame a woeful shooting performance in the first half to grind out an overtime win over the Bulldogs (6-3). Kelsie Peterson had a game-high 23 points to go along with five assists and five rebounds.

After earning a 16-12 lead at the end of the first quarter, Grace’s shooting plummeted in the second period. The Lady Lancers managed just seven points in the 10-minute quarter and trailed 31-23 at halftime. Grace hit 9-of-37 (24 percent) from the floor in the first half, including just 3-of-15 on 3-pointers.

Grace’s offensive struggles vanished in the halftime locker room, however. The Lady Lancers exploded for 27 points in the third quarter, outscoring their first-half scoring in one quarter. Grace ended the quarter with 14 consecutive points — thanks to eight points by Sarah Feasby – to lead 50-46 entering the final quarter.

A 3-pointer by Peterson lifted Grace to a seemingly comfortable eight-point lead with 3:00 remaining in regulation. Union rallied, however, scoring 10 points in the final three points to tie the game at 62-62 with 37 seconds left. Both teams misfired on their potential game-winning possessions, sending the contest to overtime.

Grace did its damage from the free throw line in overtime. Seven of Grace’s nine points came from the foul stripe as the Lady Lancers eased ahead 69-65 in the final 10 seconds. Union was fouled on a 3-pointer, however, making all three shots to whittle the Lady Lancers’ lead to one. But Brooke Sugg iced the game by hitting 2-of-2 from the foul line with six seconds to play.

Feasby finished the game with 12 points in 17 minutes, and Kelsey Sule was a spark off the bench with 12 points and a trio of 3-pointers.

Grace’s men’s basketball team enjoyed an 85-77 win over IU-Southeast at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Friday.

Brandon Vanderhegghen led the Lancers (9-3) with 20 points while playing at the home of the NBA Pacers.

The Lancers struggled to slow down the Grenadiers (4-7) in the opening half and faced a six-point deficit with 1:25 remaining. But Logan Irwin buried a 3-pointer to cut the gap in half, and a last-second basket by Erik Bowen tied the score 40-40 at halftime.

Grace was outrebounded by three in the opening half and allowed IU-Southeast to shoot 47 percent from the floor, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc.

Caleb Featherston gave Grace a lift to start the second half. Featherston scored on three straight possessions, including a rebound putback dunk to spark the Lancers. Featherston’s last jumper gave Grace a 52-40 lead, capping off a 12-0 run to start the second half.

IU-Southeast was unable to cut into Grace’s lead for the next 11 minutes. With 5:01 to play, the Grenadiers made a push. IU-Southeast used a 14-5 spurt to pull within four and trailed 69-65.

Vanderhegghen and Josh Ruggles silenced the Grenadiers’ threat from the 3-point line. The duo drained back-to-back triples to extend Grace’s lead back up the double figures, and IU-Southeast was unable to make another rally.

Grace nailed 50 percent of its shots and had a plus-seven advantage on the glass over the final 20 minutes.

For the game, over half of Grace’s points were in the paint. Bowen had the only double-double in the game, tallying 13 points and 16 rebounds to go along with five assists.

Grace’s men’s soccer team was honored with a number of national and regional awards following a successful 2015 season.

The Lancers, celebrating their 50th season of collegiate competition, produced a 14-7-3 record. Matt Hotchkin coached Grace to its most wins in a season since 1983, advancing to the NCCAA National Championships for the third time in five years. Hotchkin was named the NSCAA Region Coach of the Year — one of seven NAIA coaches honored by the NSCAA.

At the national level, Justin Festa and Robbie Barnhill were named Second Team NCCAA All-American. Kyle Hamlin was Third Team NCCAA All-American, and Jon Sands and Nakilee Weni were honorable mention for NCCAA All-American.

Festa also earned a spot on the 2015 NCCAA All-Tournament Team.

At the regional level, Grace was given three spots on the NCCAA Midwest All-Region First Team (Hamlin, Festa, Barnhill) and three spots on the Second Team (Weni, Sands, Daniel Smith).

In the classroom, Grace had four NAIA Scholar-Athletes: Barnhill, Festa, Hamlin and Jon Christensen. Additionally, Barnhill and Hamlin were awarded on the prestigious CoSIDA First Team Academic All-America® list.

The Lancers ended the season in the “Receiving Votes” section of the NAIA Postseason Top 25 Poll.

The Lady Lancers finished the season with a 15-3-3 record, landing at No. 11 in the NAIA Coaches’ Postseason Top 25 Poll. It marked the 17th straight poll that Grace has been ranked and 17th ranking overall in team history.

Grace advanced to the NAIA National Championships for the first time in school history under coach Michael Voss, hosting and winning an Opening Round matchup with Park.

Grace also earned its highest NAIA ranking (No. 8) during the 2015 season and defeated its highest-rank opponent in team history (vs. No. 2 Northwestern Ohio, Sept. 19).

Sobey graduated as the program’s all-time leader in assists. The midfielder finished her career with 42 assists and 80 points (sixth all-time).

Rondeau graduated as one of the most prolific offensive threats in team history. She led Grace in 2015 in both goals (9) and assists (4). Rondeau finished her career ranked fourth in goals (49), third in assists (28) and second in points (126).

Hollar tied for the team lead with nine goals this fall. She had six game-winning goals in 2015 to rank No. 17 in the NAIA. She has amassed 28 goals through her first three seasons.

Schue had a strong season as Grace’s goalkeeper. She posted a 0.55 goals against average to rank No. 6 in the nation, and her 11 shutouts were good for for third-most nationally.

Since 2008, Grace College has offered GOAL (Grace Opportunities for Adult Learners) to adults who wish to complete their undergraduate degree. GOAL is available both residentially and online for a B.S. in Management or a B.S. in Quality Management. With current technology, outstanding classroom instruction, and a broad range of academic resources, Grace makes completing a bachelor’s degree a reality at a price you can afford.

Practical learning is key to GOAL. Adult assessment replaces traditional examinations. Building on previous college credits and life experiences equivalent to about two years of college, the GOAL degree can be completed in just 16 months.

Each residential GOAL class is offered one night per week for five weeks or over two day-long Saturday sessions. GOAL is also available online for students who wish to complete their degree completely from home. These convenient scheduling options allow participants to earn a degree while maintaining other full-time responsibilities.

As new GOAL cohorts prepare to begin in January, recent GOAL graduates like Sherri Reneker of Warsaw are celebrating successes from their new Grace College bachelor’s degree. Last month, Sherri became a GOAL graduate earning her B.S. in Management. Throughout her enrollment in GOAL, Reneker maintained her job at Zimmer Biomet. Since graduating, Reneker was promoted from Senior Cash Applications Clerk to Cash Application Supervisor, a very gratifying move that she attributes to GOAL.

“I know this career advancement would not have been possible had I not decided to return to school for my degree,” Reneker said. “I will be forever grateful for the Christian-based leadership training I received at Grace. It is extremely rewarding to put that training into practice in my new position so soon after graduating.” Reneker calls the GOAL program “a life-changing experience.”

Grace College is currently accepting applications for the residential and online GOAL cohorts to begin in January. Prospective students can find more information by visiting www.grace.edu, by calling 877/607-0012 or by emailing goal@grace.edu.

Grace never fully recovered from its first-half struggles. The Lancers (8-3, 1-2 CL) gave up 51 points in the opening half and faced a daunting 51-32 deficit at halftime.

The tone for the game was set from tipoff. Bethel opened the contest by scoring 11 unanswered points.

Bethel’s lead hovered around 10 points until seven minutes left in the first half. The Pilots ripped off a 12-0 run and cruised to their 19-point advantage at halftime.

Grace did its best to stay within striking distance in the second half. A pair of free throws from Erik Bowen cut Bethel’s margin to 81-67 with 7:07 remaining, but that proved to be the high point of the second half for Grace.

Chad Hoffer produced 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting off the bench, Bowen added 13 points and five boards, and Tre Olive chipped in five points and two rebounds.

Grace buried 10 3’s in the contest, but the Lancers were outrebounded 45-31. Grace also struggled mightily from the charity stripe, missing 11 of its 19 free throws (42 percent).

The Lancers’ next game is a high-profile matchup with IU-Southeast. The game will be held at the NBA Pacers’ Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. For ticket information, call Grace’s athletic office at (574) 372-5100 ext 6266.